I have decided to do a challenge of sorts over the next few weeks that we are traveling; I want to do one art piece and a little blurb about it everyday. Some will be careful drawings with well thought out statements and some will be quick scribbles with only a couple of words, but there will be one everyday. So here’s the very first one for the day that our adventure begins.
-Maia

We’re going on an adventure!
When I think of adventure the first thing that pops into my head is The Hobbit. I think about Bilbo being confronted with the most terrifying and enticing offers of all time. I think about how it took a push from a friend and a glimpse at something new and exciting to get him to even think about leaving. I think about the fear and anxiety that caused him to say no in the first place and the sheer panic when he thought that he had missed his opportunity to do something great. I see Bilbo running down his pathway ill prepared and yelling hasty goodbyes over his shoulder, running away from the shire and everything that is familiar and comfortable. I see him chasing after a group of dwarves and a wizard and a journey that would take him who knows where.

I see myself in that story, afraid of what the unknown holds and that the path ahead will bring pain and hardship. I feel pulled back by the idea of comfort and familiarity, by the idea of knowing what is coming next. I also feel the blind panic when I think about missing the opportunity for new and exciting things. Not knowing is one of the scariest things I can imagine, but its also one of the most exciting. It’s what holds us back from going and what pushes us forward because the unknown holds endless possibilities, which is overwhelming at the best of times and makes us want to run for cover at the worst, but at a certain point the familiar no longer works and doing what we know is no longer an option.

Our church, our home, our community has reached this point and although the idea of jumping in with both feet when I have absolutely no idea what’s in the water makes me want to run and hide, the idea of not being a part of navigating the unknown is much worse. I walk away from everything that I know with complete terror and over powering excitement because even though I don’t exactly know where I’m going, or where we as a church are going, I have complete faith that it’s somewhere good.

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